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Jury Rules IPG Did Not Infringe Upon IMRA Patent

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OXFORD, Mass., & ANN ARBOR, Mich., Oct. 7, 2011 — A six-year fiber laser court battle ended Friday with a Michigan jury deciding that Oxford-based IPG Photonics did not infringe on IMRA America’s patent related to the use of an optical amplifier to provide a more precise and higher quality light beam from a fiber laser at higher power.

"We are disappointed that the jury has not agreed with our position and has not protected our valuable patent rights," said Takashi Omitsu, president of IMRA, which is located in Ann Arbor. "Despite this result, IMRA remains committed to protecting and enforcing its intellectual property."

The suit was originally filed in 2006 by IMRA, which develops fiber laser technology for commercial and research applications. (See: IMRA Files Patent Suit Against IPG). The validity of the patent was not in question during the trial, as the patent office had confirmed it in 2009 (See: IPG Takes Hit in Fiber Laser Patent Suit). 

IMRA has signed licensing deals for the patent with a number of companies. Last month it said it was expanding one such deal with Jenoptik AG (See: IMRA, Jenoptik Laser Expand Licensing Deal).
 
The jury heard testimony from two of the inventors of the No. 5,818,630, "Single-Mode Amplifiers and Compressors Based on Multi-Mode Fibers", experts in lasers, amplifiers and optics, and employees from both IPG and IMRA. The testimony and evidence failed to convince the jury that IPG in any way infringed.

“We will continue to aggressively defend IPG against claims relating to intellectual property,” said Valentin Gapontsev, IPG chairman and CEO.

For more information, visit: www.imra.com or www.ipgphotonics.com  

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Published: October 2011
630818AmericasBusinessfiber lasersfiber opticsImra AmericaIPG Photonicslaser technologyMassachusettsMichigan jurypatent infringementSingle-Mode Amplifiers and Compressors Based on Multi-Mode FibersValentin GapontsevLasers

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